Baby Lover
by HaleNewfound
Summary: When Shepard and Garrus rescue an orphaned Turian child from a crashing ship, they begin to find that they have feelings for each other. **(Side Note)** This was a request from one of my viewers and to let you know, I DO TAKE REQUESTS!


Baby Lover

Whining. All day; all night, Shepard heard whining. Whining, crying, fussing, wailing, screaming; the whole story. Had it not been for Garrus, she'd be dead, delusional, or crying.

Her Turian friend had helped out with the child ever since they rescued him from a crashing Turian ship. The poor baby had been found wailing over his deceased mother's body, covered from head to toe in her blood like he'd been hugging her as if she were still alive. Shepard's heart melted at the sight of him at first, and when she'd picked him up, his wailing stopped almost immediately. Little did she know, the little baby Turian would be the biggest pain in her ass since Vega.

Driven mad by the crying, Shepard trudged over to the crib she'd purchased on the citadel and leaned over the edge. Vendrus, as Garrus called him, was screaming his head off as he pounded on the mattress which he'd torn to bits the moment he entered it.

Shepard lifted him up just as Garrus was entering the room. She looked over to him while the baby dangled in the air, still wailing. Garrus' mandibles flickered and he coughed to cover up his snicker. Shepard glared at him and stormed over to him, stomping her feet loudly on the metal floor. She shoved the baby at him, her eyes piercing his.

"Here, _you_ take him!" She demanded as Garrus plucked the child from Shepard's grasp. Garrus cradled the baby in his arms, rocking him a little. In almost an instant Vendrus was asleep once more; his tiny mandibles hung slack on his face as he breathed tiny breaths. Garrus looked up from Vendrus to Shepard, his eyes warm and relaxed.

"See? He was just having a nightmare." Garrus gave Shepard that smart-ass smirk of his. "He really prefers sleeping in your bed rather than this cage you put him in."

Shepard's mouth gaped open and she punched his arm. "It's a cradle; not a cage! All babies sleep in cradles, Garrus, and Vendrus is no different." She sighed and collapsed on the couch. "He's just going to have to get used to it."

Garrus walked over to Shepard, being careful not to trip over the many baby toys that littered the floor, and sat down a good distance from her. "You know, I've... been thinking." He muttered.

Shepard's eyes widened and she turned to face him. "Uh oh, that's dangerous." She giggled. "What's up?"

Garrus looked down at either the baby or his feet, Shepard couldn't tell. His mandibles flickered nervously and his gaze was averted from hers, no matter how hard she tried to catch his gaze. Garrus cleared his throat and finally looked up at Shepard, staring into her eyes.

It didn't take Shepard long to notice how beautiful his eye color was. She'd never really admitted to Garrus how she felt about him; and now, Shepard was starting to wonder if he felt at all the same.

Overcome with emotion, Shepard was about to blurt out crazy things about how she felt but Garrus spoke instead. "You know how we said we were going to find a home for him?" He asked. Shepard stared at him, slowly nodding her head.

"Yes..." The word was drawn out cautiously. "What about it? Have you found him a home?" She asked, hoping he'd say no. Shepard didn't want to get rid of him, but at the same time, she didn't want anyone to see how big a softy she was over a baby.

Garrus cleared his throat once more and averted his gaze at the same time. "Well..." He hesitated, something he always did when talking about a personal or touchy subject. His silence made Shepard worry. Worry that he actually _had_ found Vendrus a home! Worry that he might not want to help her out anymore. Different worries rushed through her head.

Suddenly, Garrus' words interrupted the silence and her thoughts. "I don't want to get rid of him!" He shouted out. Shepard's eyes widened so wide, she felt as if her face were made of rubber.

Flabbergasted, Shepard shot up out of her seat, staring down at Garrus. "What?!" She yelled back. An exhausted whine came from Vendrus as Shepard and Garrus' shouting caused him to wake up a little. Garrus rocked him back to sleep and put him down in his crib, before snatching Shepard's hand and pulling her out to the hallway.

"Listen Shepard, I've seen how much you care about him. In public, you may push him away and call him worthless but in private, I've seen how you are with him! You love that baby whether you want to admit it or not!" His words stung as he shouted, but they were true as Shepard reluctantly accepted them in her mind.

Shepard opened her mouth to speak, but was left speechless. She pulled her lips into a tight line as she thought on what to say. Her eyes drifted to the floor for a bit, then back up to Garrus.

Shepard relaxed her lips and let out a long sigh in doing so. She tried to muster up some strength (if there was any at all) to speak, but all that came out was, "Garrus..." She breathed his name as if it her passionate. She saw Garrus flinch slightly at the way she said his name. Suddenly, his form relaxed and the two were just standing there, staring into each other's eyes.

Garrus took a step closer, raising his hand to touch her. As his hand touched her skin, Shepard's heart stopped. Garrus was touching her... He'd never touched her before, not once! Shepard looked at his hand which was resting on her shoulder, then back up at him.

"Shepard..." Garrus breathed her name back with the same amount of passion that was in her voice before. He _did_ feel the same way! All the emotions from before came rushing to her once more and Shepard found herself lunging at him, grabbing the back of his head and pulling him in for a bruising kiss.

Garrus stumbled back and was pressed against the wall outside her door. During the kiss, Shepard felt his hands slide up her back and into her hair, where he gave it a little tug. The pull on the back of her head caused their lips to part and Shepard to give a slightly pained moan. Garrus let out a rumbling sound from deep within his chest that sounded like the purr of a large cat. His muscular chest vibrated ever so slightly against her breasts; Shepard giggled as it tickled ever so slightly.

Suddenly, a loud wail of distress sounded from the bedroom. Shepard and Garrus pulled apart from each other and rushed to the room. Vendrus was out of the crib, locked in battle with a blanket that he'd caught his small talons in. Shepard ran to the distressed baby and helped him untangle his fingers from the covers and tossed them aside. She stroked his small face and let out a small chuckle.

A hand was felt on Shepard's and she turned her head to see Garrus smiling down at her and the baby. Shepard and Garrus stood up together and he hugged her from behind, stroking Vendrus' face as well.

"I'm usually not a softy or things or people," Shepard said, turning her head to look up at Garrus. "But I think I can make an exception for this..." She whispered, leaning up to kiss him. Garrus pressed their lips together and the two stood there as one, big, weird-but-happy family.


End file.
